Time-signal



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J. JOHNSON. Time Signal.

No. 233,101. Patented Oct. 12, 1880.

H w w 1 Lid I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JACOB JOHNSON, OF NEWBURYPORT, MASSACHUSETTS.

TIME-SIGNAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 233,101, dated October12, 1880.

Application filed July 17, 1880. (N model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAcoB JOHNSON, of

Newburyport, of the county of Essex and State nalizer, of the period oftime that may have intcrvened between the arrival of the car or train orengine at such station and the departure thereof of another car or trainor engine in advance, the object being to prevent the rear car, train,or engine from colliding with the advanced one.

Collisions of trains have frequently occurred by reason of the engineeror conductor of one supposing a train in advance to be at a requireddistance ahead, or as having passed or departed from a station in timefor the arrival of the train in rear. I

With my signalizer the time that may have elapsed since the departure ofa train from the signalizer-station will be indicated by the column ofcolored fluid of one of the glass tubes of the instrument, it beingsupposed that such time is to be less than a given periodas fiveminutes, for instance. Thus by the distance the top of the column offluid may have fallen since the departure of an advance train theconductor or engineer of a rear train can judge of the time that mayhave elapsed since the station was left by the advance train.

In the drawings, A and B represent two cylindrical receivers closed attheir ends and arranged parallel to eachother and at a suitable distanceapart, and connected at their middles by a bar, 0, having at its middlea hub, D, like that of a wheel, the same being to support thesignalizeron a journal and admit of the signalizer being revolvedthereon. The

receivers are also connected near their ends by rods E E, arranged asshown; and there is also a pipe, F, leading from one to the other of thereceivers near the bar 0 and opening into both of them.

Furthermore, there are between the two receivers, and on opposite sidesof the said bar 0, two transparent or glass tubes, G H, connected withthe receivers by stuffing-boxes a, arranged as shown. The upper end ofone of these tubes opens fully into the receiver above it, but the lowerend of such glass tube opens into the receiver below it by a small hole,I).

.So with the other glass tube-its lower end opens fully into thereceiver below it, while the tube at its upper end communicates with thereceiver above it by a small hole, b. Each receiver should have aninternal capacity double, or more than double, that of each of the glasstubes.

If we suppose one of the receivers to be charged with colored alcoholand each small hole I) or Z) to be gaged or of a size sufficient todischarge from its glass tube in five minutes a column of the fluidequal in length to the distance between the two stuffing-boxes of thesaid glass tube, we shall have the apparatus fitted for approximately,it not accurately, showing the period of time less than five minutesthat may have elapsed after the departure of a train from thesignalizer-station.

Immediately on the starting of the train from the station the signalizeris to be revolved one hundred and eighty degrees of a circle, in orderto bring uppermost the receiver that may contain the fluid. This willcause half the fluid in such receiver to instantly flow therefrom intoone of the glass tubes and to fill it. Should there be any fluid in theother tube such fiuid will instantaneously escape from it into the lowerreceiver. The fluid in the glass tube first named will gradually escapefrom it into the lower receiver, taking five minutes to fall to thelevel of the top of the lower stuffing-box, the extentof the fall at anytime within that period indicating the time that may have elapsed sincethe station was left by the departed train.

The apparatus is to be placed or set up in view of a conductor orengineer while at 01' passing a station of a railway, and it may beproperly revolved by a person at the station, or automatically bymechanism to be set in motion by the passing car, engine, or train, andat the exact time of its starting from or passing the station.

The pipe F is to rapidly discharge from the upper receiver into thelower one the surplus liquid in the first one beyond what maybe requiredto fill the glass tube from which the liquid is to steadilyescape, theconnecting-tube being of a diameter suflicient to allow said surplusescaping from the upper tube to get out of it before the top of thecolumn in the filled glass tube may have fallen to a level with thelowerpart of its upper smiling-box.

The rapidity of escape of the fluid from the charged glass tube willgradually decrease as the column ot'fluid may decrease in height, inconsequence of which there should be marks on the tube, or a scale ordivisional points, to

0 indicate the fall of the fluid for each minute of time.

As alcohol can be colored blue or red and cannot be frozen underordinary low temperatures, I prefer it to mercury or other fluid for usein the instrument.

I claim as my invention- A train-signalizer, substantiallyas described,consisting of the two receivers and their surplus fluid-discharger andthe two glass tubes, arranged, combined, and constructed so as, whencharged with a fluid and partially revolved, as explained, to operateessentially in manner and for the purpose set forth.

JACOB JOHNSON. Witnesses:

1:. II. EDDY, WM. W. LUNT.

